The RVBeth Archive
Around America 2003-2004
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October 18, 2003
The Journey Begins
THE BEGINNING
Check out this BAD BOY! 29 feet of living space courtesy of the 2004 Winnebago
Minnie. More room than I would have thought. There are 2 slides that expand
the rooms, so pretty comfy. Now driving the beast is another story. The
first few hours behind the wheel were pretty scary, for all other drivers.
I could feel a certain amount of top-heavy swaying going on, but got the
feel of it pretty quickly. In-town driving is a little trickier making
sure we take the corners wide enough. Todd thinks I should be much more
panicky when driving, but I’m sitting up there with the truckers and
feeling brave. We clipped a mirror on a pick-up in a small town in Kansas,
but they were illegally parked so we figured they must have asked for it
and sped off. So the truck got a little of our paint but it wasn’t too
bad.
MANHATTAN, KS
 
First stop was near Manhattan, Kansas. These two pictures are from the
Konza Prairie, a project of The Nature Conservancy. TNC's soul mission
is 'To preserve plants, animals and natural communities that represent
the diversity of life on earth by protecting the lands and waters they
need to survive.'
The land is used by Kansas State University researchers to study the
primary forces that shape the prairie - fire, grazing by large animals
and climate. Researchers systematically burn the prairie to analyze the
effects on the grasses. They keep native bison and domestic livestock to
graze the land as well.
Don’t judge the place by my photos, not my best work and definitely
does not show off the beauty of this place.
Our first night as official RVer’s came while parked at Tuttle Creek
State Park. We were obviously novices as I walked around the campground.
These people could have held out for 40 years at this place. They had every
gadget and set-up that you can imagine. We were lucky to get our Home On
Wheels level. But we’ll get better at this I’m sure.
SOUTHWEST IOWA
Unfortunately I didn’t take any pictures this day when my brother Glenn
escorted us around the small towns of SW Iowa, where I was born and graduated
high school. The biggest regret is that I didn’t take the shot of the
observation tower I helped build while I worked for the Youth Conservation
Corps during my high school/college summers. This tower is STILL standing
in Hacklebarney Woods Park even after ?? years.
RAPID CITY, SD
First of all, we are in South Dakota in the middle of October and we
have 80 degree weather! After freezing the last 2 nights, this part of
the country is experiencing a warm trend.
Mt. Rushmore, just as I pictured it and not a disappointment. I’m
including a very traditional shot of the faces even though I got some really
cool pics up close on the Presidential Trail that runs closer and underneath
the giant heads. The Crazy Horse Memorial is unbelievable. When finished
(which I can’t imagine will be done in the next 100 years), it will be
the largest sculpture on earth. There is a very interesting story about
the guy who started this project for the Lakota Indians on his own without
federal or state assistance. The work continues today by 7 of his 10 kids
and remains completely funded by admissions and private contributions.
Crazy Horse’s face is complete and they are starting work on the horse’s
head. You can watch them work – dynamite and all - from the visitor center.
Custer State Park is a driving experience through herds of wild buffalo,
burros and prairie dog ‘towns’.
I didn’t realize how beautiful South Dakota was until now. You have
the flat, stark prairies to the east and then the Black Hills of the Mt.
Rushmore area to the west. The mountains indicate the start of the Rockies
and colder nights in our little ‘house’.
Next stops – Buffalo, WY and Florence, MT.
 
October 24, 2003
Out of the Prairies and Into the Mountains
WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA AND INTO WYOMING
After spending 3 great days outside Rapid City and Mt. Rushmore, we
headed west towards Devil’s Tower, WY. We stopped at Sturgis, SD for
gas. Sturgis, for those who don’t know, is home of the largest motorcycle
rally in the world. I was tempted to get the “official” rally t-shirt,
but don’t exactly see myself as a Harley Chick. Even though the rally
has already happened for this year, there were still several bikes and
true motorcycle enthusiasts buzzing around town. These folks are not your
‘rebel’ corporate guys who go out and buy a $20K Harley for the weekend.
This is the real deal out here in the wilds of the High Plains. Lots of
leather and lots of tattoos.
Devil’s Tower was amazing. Although the up-close shot is impressive,
the view of that thing from 25 miles away (from the east) is startling.
It doesn’t even look real on the landscape. It is of course used in the
“Close Encounters” movie and has a very other-worldly feel about it.
We spent a couple of hours there and hiked around the base where several
rock climbers were taking different routes up the rock.
 
I must mention that on the way to Devil’s Tower, we had taken a non-interstate
road and came upon real cowboys herding their cows down the side of the
road. These weren’t crusty old Marlboro Man cowboys, these guys were
young. (All you single girls that are having trouble meeting a guy; I think
I’ve found a place for you to look.)
We stopped in Buffalo, WY and while Todd did one of his interviews,
I strolled down the main street and stopped in Margo’s Pottery Shop.
I met Patty, the girl working there, who was very friendly and told me
all about living there in Buffalo. Wages are low and the winters can be
tough, but I got the impression there isn’t anywhere else she would rather
be.
PROPS TO GOOD SAM CLUB
Before I go much further, I must give props to the Good Sam Club. For
being a member, we are directed to any of the RV campgrounds that are members
of the club. If the campground is a member, we can be assured of very clean
grounds, nice laundry facilities and friendly and informative hosts. We’ve
never felt unsafe staying at one and they make the set-up that goes along
with RV travel very convenient. For the times that our Sprint mobile card
wouldn’t work for the internet, they have hookups in the park. So far,
we’ve stayed at seven different Good Sam’s and have yet to be disappointed.
(However, the Buffalo stop was a little different. This area is big hunting
territory and we did have a big group of hunters that strung their deer
up at the far end of the campground. Not exactly something I expected to
wake up to, but somehow it seemed pretty natural in this place.)
As far as the other RVers go, they are a friendly and happy group. Always
willing to give you advice about your rig and routes to travel. Works for
me!
MISSOULA, MT
Missoula, MT is a beautiful city in Western Montana. After struggling
to get the RV over a 6300 ft. mountain pass, we screamed down the mountain
into this quaint little town. Downtown was a cute little area with restaurants,
art galleries and bookstores. Although my downtown shot didn’t turn out,
I did get a shot of the County Courthouse. Being a college town, it had
the feel of a young population with an emphasis on the outdoors and environmental
concerns. It is also the home of the Smoke Jumpers training facility. The
city has a 360 degree backdrop of mountains. One of the locals told us
they lost trees in over 400,000 acres this summer. You can see a picture
of a burned mountain below.
 
Right after leaving Missoula, we stopped outside Florence, ID so Todd
could conduct his interview with the poet Sandra Alcosser. She lives in
the mountains between Lolo and Florence, MT and offered to come pick us
up from a parking lot, so as to not chance having problems getting the
Winnie up the mountain dirt road. This was the first interview that I actually
sat in on. I was so happy I did. Sandra was a wonderful host, inviting
us to her fantastic log cabin that had wonderful antique pieces and that
Northwest flavor. She fed us cookies and fruit and after the interview,
sent us back with herbs picked from her garden. She was an interesting
person, having spent time in New York in the Green Gorillas (turning empty
lots into gardens and green parks) as well as San Diego and now Montana
for her academic career.
HIGHWAY 12 THROUGH IDAHO
  
After leaving Montana, we took Highway 12 through the panhandle of
Idaho. Following the Lochsa River, we traveled 160 miles with no towns,
gas stations, or rest areas to pass, much as Lewis & Clark did years
ago. We saw very little traffic and it was great. We passed a sign “77
Miles of Winding Road” and it was. We both agreed this was our favorite
drive of the trip so far.
Finally, this roadside sign off Hwy 12 cracked me up. Apparently the
bears hadn’t completely left the area.
Also, if you would like Todd’s perspective (he is the writer after
all), you can check out his site.
He weaves his book project notes in with his own narrative of the trip.
Good stuff. |